Customer Reviews

Air Force One

5 star:		(121)
4 star:		(84)
3 star:		(25)
2 star:		(14)
1 star:		(32)

 

 

In the Summer of 1997, audiences were treated with another action film from Harrison Ford. During the 1990's, Ford has made quite a number of successful action films but his performance in "AIR FORCE ONE" was truly an example that this Hollywood veteran still had what it takes to be an action star.

The film was directed by well-known action director Wolfgang Petersen ("The Perfect Storm", "Troy", "Outbreak", "Das Boot"), music by well-known composer Jerry Goldsmith ("Rambo", "Star Trek: First Contact", "Star Trek: The Next Generation", "Basic Instinct") and Director of Photography by Michael Ballhaus ("Gangs of New York", "The Departed", "Wild Wild West").

The film was received positively by critics and a success in the box office as it brought in over $315 million worldwide. "AIR FORCE ONE" even received attention from President Bill Clinton who enjoyed the film and watched it twice. The film would go on to receive two Academy Award nominations for "Best Film Editing" and "Best Sound".

VIDEO & AUDIO:

"AIR FORCE ONE" features a pretty solid transfer on Blu-ray. Video is presented in 1080p High Definition (aspect ration of 2:40:1) and one thing that I will make clear is that while many films featured in the 90's tend to have a DNR, clean, waxy or soft effect in terms of picture quality, the good news is that "AIR FORCE ONE" does not.

In fact, there are scenes where the detail comes out quite nicely. But if there was one thing that the Blu-ray High Definition transfer does happen to bring out is the amount of grain. But I would rather take a transfer full of grain than the soft, waxy DNR look any day. And I am so happy that Sony Pictures Home Entertainment decided to feature "AIR FORCE ONE" with a good HD transfer of the film.

As for the audio, I have one word and that is "magnificent".

"AIR FORCE ONE" has one of the most impressive soundtracks that I have heard from a 1990's film. The soundtrack just sounds absolutely wonderful on English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 (the film is also featured in French Dolby TrueHD 5.1).

The film features a high number of action scenes and gunfire, music, mechanical sounds from the vehicles, jet engines flying, helicopter rotors spinning, it would seem that so much was put into the emphasis of having a wonderful soundtrack that "AIR FORCE ONE" truly delivers. And these are not short bursts of audio, there are plenty of scenes that utilize this explosive audio throughout the film.

I was absolutely in awe of how all the speakers were being utilized, especially my surround channels and I also noticed a few times where my subwoofer would utilize low frequency sounds. "AIR FORCE ONE" is an action thriller that truly delivers with its audio that I can say that this is one of the better sounding action thrillers from the 1990's that just shines on Blu-ray. And just to think that this film is 12 years old. I was absolutely thrilled by the audio quality of the film.

As for subtitles, the film is presented in English, English SDH and French.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

"AIR FORCE ONE" features a commentary track by Director Wolfgang Petersen and Michael Coleman. This is the same commentary from the DVD release but there is good information from Petersen on scenes that were actual aerial shots and not CG and which parts were shot on a set and were CG'd. Also, learning about his feelings towards his cast members, Harrison Ford especially and how Ford did his own stunt work.

BD Live is also enabled and there are commercials in 1080p for upcoming releases from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.

JUDGMENT CALL:

I am a big Harrison Ford fan and I watched this film immediately when it came out on theaters. My first impression was that Harrison Ford should definitely be President because it was like a combination of a President meets DIE HARD's John McClane. Well, not really but Harrison Ford's role as a President who fights back was definitely a highlight throughout the film.

One thing that I know is when a film is being directed by Wolfgang Petersen, the viewer is definitely going to be treated with an exceptional, action-packed film and "AIR FORCE ONE" is just that. Even 12 years later and this film still holds up quite well. Petersen and everyone involved in this film did a wonderful job and I have to say that this is my favorite Harrison Ford action thriller to come out in the 1990's. He manages to have the suave, charisma and that look and feel of an action star but in this case, he's the President of the United States.

But for those who own the DVD of "AIR FORCE ONE", you may be wondering if its worth the double dip? I have to answer with an extreme "YES!!!". The soundtrack of "AIR FORCE ONE" is top notch and I will say that its one of the most immersive soundtracks I have heard on Blu-ray. Also, bare in mind, this is not a new action film, this was a film released in the Summer of 1997 and it can compete with some of the recent, bigger releases on Blu-ray. That is how magnificent this film sounds on Blu-ray.

If there were faults in the Blu-ray transfer, its the fact that there are not many special features included. Just the audio commentary but no HD trailer and no making of featurette. The other thing is that although the film looks better than many 1990's film on Blu-ray and avoids the waxy, DNR look but with its HD transfer, grain is elevated. Though not too bad, it is noticeable and this may be a slight issue for some viewers but I tend to be on side of grain is part of film and high definition elevates the look of grain. And personally, I would rather take the grain than a transfer with a lot of DNR or edge enhancement.

Overall, "AIR FORCE ONE" is a magnificent action-packed thriller and a film that Harrison Ford truly shines in. And as for the Blu-ray, this is the definitive version of "AIR FORCE ONE" to own!

Air Force One, the 1997 summer hit directed by Wolfgang Petersen (The Boat/Das Boot, In The Line of Fire) and starring Harrison Ford as President James Marshall, stretches the term "willing suspension of disbelief" to its limits, yet, incredibly, it works.

Co-starring Gary Oldman, Glenn Close, Wendy Crewson, Liesel Matthews, William H. Macy, and Dean Stockwell, Air Force One's premise is simple: Russian ultra-Communist terrorists take over the President's plane on its way back to the U.S. from Moscow. Marshall, who by happenstance is separated from his family and staff during the takeover, must use his military training (he's a former Air Force pilot) and his wits to regain control of Air Force One and rescue the hostages before the terrorists achieve their aims.

The terrorists, led by Ivan Korshunov (Oldman), are seeking the immediate release of General Alexander Radek (Jurgen Prochnow), who was snatched from his palace in Kazakhstan by a joint team of Russian and American Special Forces. Radek and his followers believe in the restoration of the old Soviet Union, and until both Russia and the U.S. intervened, had ruled Kazakhstan with as much regard for human life as the Taliban exhibited when they ruled Afghanistan. After a ceremony hosted by the grateful Russian President in which Marshall warns rogue nations and terrorists that "we will no longer be afraid. It's your turn to be afraid," the American delegation heads to one of Moscow's main airports to board the Presidential plane.

Little do they know that Korshunov and his team, using falsified press credentials, have passed through both Russian and American security and are aboard. Ironically, they are given a tour of Air Force One by the unsuspecting assistant press secretary, Melanie Mitchell (Donna Bullock). And why not? To the Secret Service agents and the Air Force Security detachment, Korshunov and his people are reporters, harmless and unarmed. So how in the world are these guys going to storm Air Force One, "the most secure aircraft in the world?" Hmmm....and why do Korshunov and Secret Service agent Gibbs (Xander Berkeley) exchange that glance as they pass each other, eh?

Petersen and screenwriter Andrew W. Marlowe never do explain Gibbs' motivations for his subsequent actions (as the director admits in the audio commentary track), but by the time audiences start asking those "real life" questions about plausibility, the sheer adrenaline rush provided by this action-packed film suppresses the "yeah, right" response to its premise. The Air Force (which willingly participated in the production of this film) says there is no escape pod in Air Force One's list of defensive measures, and viewers know that no sane person, whether terrorist or not, is going to fire automatic weapons inside an airborne plane unless he or she knew the mission was going to fail anyway.

Mixed in with the gunfire and explosions that punctuate the film, Petersen and Marlowe endow their characters with depth and believability. Petersen makes viewers care about each person being held hostage, warts and all, so that when one is lost, it feels real. Even Korshunov is played in such way that his motivations feel true and heartfelt, even if his cause is not just.

Yet Petersen and his cast and crew make audiences forget these dull real life facts. By the time the credits roll to Jerry Goldsmith's rousing End Title Suite, the viewer will wish the current occupant of the Oval Office were replaced by Harrison Ford's President Marshall, who is not only a man of political integrity but also a man of action.

``Air Force One'' is a thriller that taps into our secretly cherished associations with the presidency. It gives us the president of our dreams, a president of mythic virtues, and then shows him desperately at risk.
The catch is that the audience must believe that it's watching the president of the United States. Buy it, and ``Air Force One,'' now out on video, is halfway home. Don't buy it, and the film becomes a preposterous thriller.

Fortunately, the film finds in Harrison Ford the one actor who can fully inhabit two kinds of grandeur -- action-movie bigness and the aura of the presidency. He has the ego and the intelligence for the job. He has the Gary Hart hair. He also has a quality that Americans perhaps are nostalgic for -- sincerity.

As President James Marshall, Ford is beyond sincere. He is an impassioned visionary. We meet him for the first time at a Kremlin banquet in his honor, giving a speech in which he's about to implode with rage and moral fervor. ``It's your turn to be afraid!'' he warns terrorists. By the time Gary Oldman, as an obsessed Kazak super-nationalist, and his band of Communist mal contents hijack the president's Boeing 747, the act seems like a chilling violation.

There's a violence to ``Air Force One'' that's simply not present in the more cartoonish action films. Bullets rip nasty holes into doors, and the sound of gunshots in the confined space of the presidential plane is a jolt. Oldman's enjoyment in murdering defenseless people makes the violence more personal and frightening. Director Wolfgang Petersen's action fantasy escalates into midair dogfights and elaborate stunts that have people dangling from the Air Force One parachute ramp and later trying to transfer via a cable to a rescue aircraft. There is a tone of confident military heroics and almost a reverence for the presidency that seem a throwback to World War II propaganda movies. ``Air Force One'' might not be the role of Ford's career, but it might be the ultimate role of his maturity.

When Air Force One, carrying President James Marshall and his family, is taken over by terrorists, the President makes it to the escape pod on the plane, but he refuses to leave while his family is still on board. With all members of the Secret Service dead and the terrorists threatening to kill a hostage every half-hour until a prisoner is released from a Russian jail, it is up to Marshall to stop the terrorists. Will he be able to stop the terrorists and save his family?

Okay, in this type of film viewers know from the beginning that the good guys are going to win and the bad guys are going to lose, badly, but not before lots of people die. But, while somewhat predictable, and highly implausible, this is still a good thriller, with plenty of edge of your seat chills. There's just enough twist on the action adventure formula to keep the viewer from guessing what will happen next.

Director Wolfgang Petersen deserves most of the credit for making this film work as well as it does. There are plenty of thrilling action sequences, especially the one that closes out the movie. Harrison Ford is a bit stiff as the President at the beginning of the film, but loosens up and does fine once he gets into action hero mode. Gary Oldman is wonderfully creepy as the main terrorist. Glenn Close and Dean Stockwell do fine as the Vice President and Defense Secretary. William H. Macy is, as always, perfect in a supporting role. Wendy Crewson is also good as the First Lady.

This is a good action adventure film.

Air Force One DVD

Air Force One starring Harrison Ford is one of my favorite movies for all the wrong reasons.

First it shows you what an U. S. President ought to be:
- An Honorably discharged veteran (in the movie he had won the Congressional Medal of Honor)
- Brave ( he chose to stay behind and fight the terrorist who had hijacked the plane)
- A man of action, not just words.
Glenn Close plays a superb Vice-President. In the movie the President's family on the surface mirrors Bill Clinton's, wife with a teenage , blonde headed daughter. Too bad reality is so different.

Anyhow as Bill Clinton recently said it's all a fairy tale.

Highly recommended for people who want to know how a President is suppose to be and for fans of Harrison Ford.





Gunner February

P. S. Did you know Harrison Ford was a carpenter when discovered for the first Star Wars movie?

What happens when the leader of the free world gets hijacked on his own airplane? A damn fine movie!

I like it when the good guys win. I like it when the bad guys get their @$$'s kicked in a big way. I like it when people do the right things for the right reasons and the results are good. I guess I'm old fashioned that way. That is what this film is like.

Harrison Ford plays the president. He is not just any US president; he is a former war hero and he means what he says. He stands up for what is right. While returning from a state visit to Russia, his plane gets hijacked by terrorists. The secret service manages to get the president to an escape pod and get the pod launched. When it is recovered, the president is not on board. He is still on Air Force One with the bad guys and his family and staff. He's hacked off and goes about taking care of business. For him, that means taking care of his people.

The bad guys are as bad and vicious as they can be. The good guys are scared but, mostly, they are honorable and try to do the right thing. I wish real life was like that.

The film is filled with twists and turns. It is also filled with unexpected "cliffhanger" moments. To relieve the tension, it also has some great light moments.

Watch this one when you have time to sit through the whole thing. You won't want to stop for anything.

If you like a "edge of your seat" movie then check out Air Force One and you will not be dissapointed. I originally saw it in the theater and the DVD does it justice (especially if you're watching it in a home-theater setting!). Watching the movie with the Director's narration is almost as good as the movie itself.

Harrison Ford's character is a bit too honest and upright to be a believable president but he put in what I think is one of his best performances to date. Gary Oldman is very effective in his role as a Kazakhstani who is willing to die for his cause and injected a tremendous amount of energy into the film.

What makes this movie work is that you get to watch something happen that is improbable and that is something audiences can't get enough of (example: Independace Day , etc). Yes, there are some technical aspects of the story that you need to be willing to overlook, like terrorists walking onto Air Force One posing as journalists (yes, reporters really do fly on the plane, but they are "familiar faces" to the crew).

So if you are thinking about adding this movie to your collection, do it! You will enjoy every minute of it!

Waiting for Indiana Jones IV to come to pass, it is always time to reflect on the sad state of Harrison Ford's career, and as we flip through the years it seems to me he hasn't had a bona fide hit since 1997. (2000's WHAT LIES BENEATH probably made money, but few credit Ford's presence in that thriller for its success; possibly it was a hit due to the well-tuned script and the expert direction by Robert Zemeckis. In any case Michelle Pfeiffer--another star of the 1990s whose career has gone sadly awry--deserves half the credit as well.) Otherwise it's like a list of one disaster after another. K-19 THE WIDOWMAKER? Dead in the water. HOLLYWOOD HOMICIDE? Not a bad show but the public stayed away in droves. RANDOM HEARTS? When you look up "catastrophe" in the dictionary you get a still from this movie. SIX DAYS SEVEN NIGHTS? Awful. WATER TO WINE (2004)? Even his fans don't know what it is! I'm not sure FIREWALL will break the curse either, it sounds like a re-tread of an earlier Ford flop called FRANTIC.

So when we look back and try to find the last good patch of Harrison Ford's once invincible streak, we come up with a thump against this indisputable box office sensation, which rules the theaters world wide for a brief spell in 97. The critics thought it piffle, but it answered a need in the US public, maybe to see a strong president defying the Russians one last time. Reactionary? No two moviegoers will read its plot the same way, but there are certainly cimilarities to the FOX TV hit "24," which it foreshadowed in so many ways, even down to the canny use of amiably sinister Xander Berkeley, the husband in SAFE. And of course the death defying traumas that occur to Air Force One in both programs.

Most of all, I think people long for a president who's more like James Marshall here, than the one we had in 1997 or the one we have now. He's a father figure, he's still vigorous and sexy, he's got a good sense of humor, knows his way around a gun AND he protects us from the threat of Glenn Close.

AIR FORCE ONE itself was a sort of comeback project for the beleaguered Ford, whose previous films had been major disappointments--the terrible SABRINA remake and the muddled IRA thriller DEVIL'S OWN with Brad Pitt. I think at that minute we really needed Harrison Ford to start thinking about how to sustain a career. Instead he just must have said Ah Screw It and switched the remote to a then-new TV show called ALLY McBEAL. The rest is film history.

Harrison Ford as President--that aspect alone would be enough to drive many to see Air Force One. Yet this thriller does not disappoint even the most discerning critics of action film and indeed stands out as one--if not THE--best action film made since the 80's.

The premise: ex-Soviet dissidents hijack Air Force One in revenge for the President's crackdown on terrorism and terrorist regimes. Gary Oldman plays an excellent terrorist, and Harrison Ford's President is the kind of hands-on hero that would prompt a repeal of the 22nd Amendment (for those unsavvy of the Constitution, that's the one that limits Presidents to two terms).

The action ride simply does not quit as it begins with the hijackers' takeover of Air Force One (with the help of a traitorous Secret Serviceman) and the President's apparent escape to Ford's battle to retake the plane and rescue his staff to a near-landing at Ramstein AFB in Germany to the in-air refueling to MiGs firing upon Air Force One to the final confrontation... nor like some films is the pacing flawed so that the watcher is drained or left wanting after the first few scenes; Air Force One simply keeps viewers on the edges of their seats for the entire film.

If you enjoy action films, you will love Air Force One.

DVD was made for movies like Air Force One.

It is definately the the best DVD I know, not meaning the best movie, but the best DVD. It's maximum impact! The sound, the images, so crisp and clear, as close to theater quality as humanly possible! The DVD I think will even have a chance of surpassing it is Jurassic Park, but we'll have to wait a see if that's true.

Of course the movie itself is nothing to sneeze at, it's fantastic! Wolfgang Peterson is a brilliant director, only he, mabye John McTiernan (director of Die Hard) could make an action movie this well. The sound is incredible, the special effects are superb (except for in the last scene) the score is rich and patriotic (hats off to Jerry Goldsmith) and the acting, well let me tell you about the acting.

Harrison Ford, finaly a president you can like! His acting is unsurpassed as always, heck we even finaly get to see Harrison Ford cry in this film! And who makes him cry? Only the 2nd craziest actor in hollywood, Gary Oldman (Christopher Walken being the first) His portrayel of a Neo-Russian Radical is believable and terrifying. The other actors are fair in their roles.

I had one problem with the film though, parts of it were kind of confusing. You find out right in the beginning who let the terrorists on the plane, yet the guy always seems to be on the good guys side even when he's fighting the terrorists, and oh, it's just too confusing to think about. The action of the film is so intense though that you'll hardly notice the first time, but once you've watched the film as many times as I have, you might notice.

Once again this was the type of movie DVDs were made for, great action that makes for a great sound and video, without throwing away plot.